CHAPTER TEN
Emerson
IT’S BEEN THREE WEEKS ON the road, and three weeks of non stop sightseeing, driving, and singing. I’ve snapped so many photos on this trip. I’m glad everything is digital, but I can’t wait to print some—there is no better feeling than flicking through physical photos—sliding a screen just isn’t the same.
I’m twenty-eight years old and prior to this adventure, I had never ventured out of the state of New York. Now, I’ve traveled the world and in twenty-one days, I’ve seen more of the U.S. than I have ever before. The small country towns are quaint. Some are scary ghost towns, while others are stuck back in the past, frozen in time for all eternity. The big cities are bright and bustling, and for the first time since leaving New York, I kind of miss the hustle and bustle of it. My plan is to drive along Route 66 until I get to the East Coast, but one day I see a sign on the side of the road and I decide to take a detour.
Pulling off Route 66, I drive toward Colorado and find myself in a small town called Nels Cove. I’m not sure what caused me to pull off, but I was drawn here, it was as if this town was speaking to me. An invisible force was pulling me in and I had no control to stop it.
On the outskirts of town there is a stunning lake. As I pass by, I think how nice it would be to lie on the bank with a picnic lunch and watch the world pass by. I can’t wait to explore it, I think to myself as I continue the drive into town.
A few minutes later, I park my car on Main Street. I climb out and look up and down the street, immediately, I feel at home. Lifting my arms above my head, I stretch out and roll my shoulders. This detour was longer than I usually would drive in a day, but as I glance around the town square I smile and internally high-five myself for coming here.
Leaning down, I pick my handbag up off the passenger seat and grab my bottle of water. Unscrewing the cap, I take a drink before I lock my car and head off to explore Nels Cove. I don’t get too far before my tummy rumbles, and as fate would have it, I’m outside a diner called Tiff’s. Opening the door, I step inside and a bell rings above my head. Everyone stops, stares, and then goes back to their meal and/or conversation. Small towns, I think to myself as I walk toward the counter.
“Afternoon, darlin’. Take a seat anywhere and I’ll be with you in a moment,” the waitress says as she walks past me to deliver an arm full of meals. The food smells permeate my nose and I slightly moan in delight.
“Thanks,” I say, as I head toward the booth in the back corner. Sitting down, I make sure that I’m facing toward the diner, I always sit like this because: A. no one can attack me from behind, you can never be too careful, and B. so I can people watch. I love to watch people, watching is one of my favorite pastimes. While I wait, I glance around the diner, watching the people go about their business. It sparks a memory of Brian and me—when we were bored—we’d head to Central Park and people watch. He and I would spend hours watching others and making up stories…good times.
With a smile on my face and my heart feeling happy at that memory, I pick up the menu and look over it. Everything sounds yummy and I’m not sure what I want.
A few moments later, the same lady from before walks over to me. “Hey, I’m Tiff,” she says, placing a glass of water down in front of me. “What can I get for ya?”
“Ummm, it all looks good,” I say, looking up at Tiff. “What do you recommend?” I ask.
“It’s all good.” She winks at me. “But I recommend the cheeseburger and fries. Followed by one of my famous muffins,” she says with a smile.
“That sounds great, I’ll take that.”
“Be back in a jiffy.” She picks up the menu and heads back to the counter. “Cheeseburger up,” she shouts in the little window behind the counter.
“No need to shout, woman, I ain’t deaf yet, but if you keep shouting like that I will be.”
With a smile, I laugh to myself, and for the first time in a long time, I feel happy, genuinely happy. It’s as if I’m meant to be here.
After lunch, I walk around Nels Cove. It’s not a very big town but I love it here. I find myself in the park, across from the town square. Taking a seat on one of the benches, I look around and smile. A feeling of contentment and happiness washes over me, and oddly, I feel like I’m home. I haven’t felt that since I lost everyone. A crazy idea morphs into my mind: I think I want to stay here in Nels Cove. My thoughts are interrupted when an older lady sits next to me. “Beautiful day, isn’t it?”
Looking at her, I smile, she reminds me of Nana James. “It sure is. You have a beautiful town here.”
“We sure do. I’ve lived here for eighty-two years and I couldn’t imagine calling any other place home. I’m Mavis White. Lovely to meet you.”
“Emerson James, a pleasure to meet you, Mrs. White.”
Mrs. White and I fall into easy conversation; it feels like I have known her my whole life.
“Where are you from, dear?”
“Originally New York, but at the moment I have no fixed address.”
“I have a feeling Nels Cove will be your home for the foreseeable future.” She winks at me, before standing up. “You have a lovely afternoon, Emerson.”
“You too, Mrs. White.” I nod and watch her walk off. As she turns the corner, that crazy idea from before pops back into my head again. Do I want to stay here in Nels Cove? Could I call this place home? I wonder to myself if that’s why I was pulled here. Am I meant to be here?
After another half hour, I decide to find somewhere to stay for the night. Jumping up, I walk back toward my car. When I get there I notice a piece of paper under my windshield wiper.
Sam Martin has his mother’s cottage for rent.
You’ll love it there.
Regards,
Mavis White
Smiling to myself, I tuck her note into my purse, climb into the driver’s seat, and start the engine before I make my way to the Nels Cove Inn that I passed on the way into town.
* * *
After checking in, I grab the room key off the counter, a real key by the way, and head to my room, before turning back to the desk clerk. “Excuse me, Clive, do you know where I might find Sam Martin?”
“Tomorrow morning, he’ll be at Tiff’s for breakfast.”
“Thanks,” I reply before turning around and heading to my room.
Early the next morning, I pull on my running gear and go for a jog. After running for five miles, I stop in at Tiff’s. The place is packed. This must be the place to eat in town, I think to myself as I take a seat at the counter. “Morning, darlin’,” Tiff says with a big grin on her face. She’s too happy for this time of morning, but her mood is infectious and I find myself smiling back to her.
“Morning, Tiff. Can I grab a coffee and muffin to go, please?”
“Sure thing.” She turns toward the server window and again yells an order through. I’m pretty sure Bella will hear her in New York and I laugh to myself. She places my muffin in front of me and as I fix the bill up, I ask, “Do you know if Sam Martin has been in yet?”
The man next to me, spins in my direction and taps me on the arm. With a toothless grin, he says, “I’m Sam.”
“Hi, Sam,” I say, stretching out my hand toward him. “Ummm, Mrs. White said you might have a place for rent.”
“Mavis said a young lady would be looking for me. I told her she was dreaming, but looks like I was wrong. My mother’s one bedroom cottage over on Brentwood Lane is available. It’s a bit rundown though.”
“I don’t mind, but I don’t know how long I’ll be here. I’d be happy to clean the place up for you, in exchange for an open end date on the agreement, but first, would I be able to have a look at it?”
“That sounds fine to me. Momma would love to have someone as pretty as you living there.” He winks at me. “How about later today?”
“Great, what time?”
“I’ll meet you there at two thirty p.m.”
“Sounds great, thank you so much. I’m Emerson, by the way.”
“Nice to meet you, Emerson. I’ll see you later.”
Sam gets up and shuffles out of the diner. Tiff places my coffee next to my change, which I hadn’t noticed she’d handed back to me. “You just made Sam’s year. Since Mrs. Martin went into the home, he’s been sad and lonely. Even if you don’t rent the cottage, he will be happy to just show it off. But I have a feeling, a good feeling.”
She doesn’t get to explain further because the guy in the kitchen shouts, “Order up!” He winks at me and Tiff rolls her eyes.
“Thanks for the coffee and muffin. Have a great day.”
Turning around, I exit the diner and look across to the park where I see a gentleman running. He is built like an Adonis and I can’t help but stare. Someone clearing their throat draws my attention and I scoot out of the doorway. “Sorry,” I say, but they ignore me and head inside. I look back toward the park again, but there’s no one there. Shaking my head, I think I must have imagined seeing him and I turn toward the inn and head back.
When I get there, I go up to my room to grab my car keys and head out to the lake that I passed on my way in; Lake Nelson. Turns out the Nels Cove, used to be called Nelson Cove, but through time the ‘on’ had slipped away from the town’s name, and the town officially became Nels Cove. However, the lake remained Lake Nelson. It’s quirky things like this that makes me love this place.
A few minutes later, I’m parking my car. Grabbing my muffin and coffee, I climb out and walk down to the water’s edge. Taking a seat, I stare out to the crystal clear water as I sip on my coffee. It’s so peaceful here, I think to myself. Picking up my muffin, I reach into my handbag and pull out a candle, I shove it into the muffin. “Happy Birthday Emerson,” I whisper to myself as I light the candle. For as long as I can remember, Mom, Dad, and Dave would give me a muffin in bed with a candle on my birthday. Brian continued the tradition when we moved in together, and even though they are gone, I still want to keep the tradition going, it’s like they are here with me.
After blowing out the candle and making my wish, I remove the candle and eat my muffin and drink my coffee in silence. Enjoying the serenity, I lie back on the shore’s edge, and for the first time when I think of everyone, I don’t get sad. I even find myself smiling as I remember the birthday lunch last year and the double celebration. I find myself, rubbing my ring finger; I still remember the feeling of wearing the ring he gave me. After losing Brian, I took off my engagement ring and placed it in my special box. It was too much of a reminder of what I had lost, funnily enough, most nights I go to bed rubbing my finger, feeling the loss of not only the ring but him too.
Sitting up again, I stare at the water. It’s so calm and peaceful; the water lapping at the shoreline has a calming effect. Standing up, I strip off my top and pants, leaving me in my sports bra and panties. Walking to the water’s edge, I wade out a few feet and I dive into the lake. It’s damn cold, but so refreshing at the same time.
Dunking myself under the water, I close my eyes and an image of Brian appears. He’s smiling happily at me, his image begins to fade, and I swear I can hear his voice. He’s telling me to take a leap. Breaking the surface, I take a deep breath; I must have been under for a long time. With a smile on my face, I climb out.
When I get back to my clothes, I turn around and stare out at the water; my impromptu swim causing ripples to appear on the surface. Bending down to pick up my clothes, I whisper, “Take a leap.” In that moment, I decide that even if the place I’m looking at this afternoon is a dump, I’m going to stay in Nels Cove.
* * *
Later that afternoon, I meet Sam at his mom’s house. Tiff was right—this place is run-down. The gardens are an overgrown jungle, you can’t tell what’s a plant and what’s a weed. The white shingles are dirty, but the front porch is gorgeous. With a quick clean, this place will be liveable and I can putter here and there to bring her back to life. As I walk up the stairs to go inside for a look, a feeling prickles over me, there is something about the cottage that is speaking to me.
“Sam, I’ll take it,” I confirm as he is locking up. I agree to rent it out for three months, for now, and promise to work on the gardens and exterior of the cottage. When I say that, he beams his toothless smile at me and envelopes me in a hug. He tells me that I can move in in a few days’ time; he wants to give the place a spruce up. I tell him it’s fine and that I can do it, but he won’t hear of it. So, to appease him, I give him a few days and three days later, I pick up the keys. Within an hour, I’m all moved in. Sam really cleaned up the inside so I was unpacked fairly quickly, but it’s pretty easy when you only have one suitcase and a backpack.
My Mustang is in the driveway and I’m sitting on the front porch swing with a glass of wine in hand. Taking a sip, I savor the flavor as the crisp taste dances on my tastebuds.
Picking up my phone, I text Bella my crazy news.
EMERSON – I just rented a house in Nels Cove
BELLA – You did what?
BELLA – And where the hell is Nels Cove?
EMERSON – Colorado
BELLA – OMG, you crazy woman. I’ll call you after work
BELLA - PS. Happy Birthday for the other day
Placing my phone down next to me, I click on Spotify and “Hall of Fame” by The Script starts playing. I take that song to be another sign from Brian that staying here is what I’m meant to do. Leaning back, I tuck my legs under my butt and smile. Closing my eyes, I thank the powers above for sending me here. I know I’ll be happy here in Nels Cove.